Six students are immersed in research this summer because of their love of and curiosity about math.

Their work applies mathematics in pragmatic and analytical ways to topics as varied as sports, music, science, and artificial intelligence.

Dr. Ryan Savitz reports that two students were accepted to present their work at Mathfest, the annual meeting of the Mathematical Association of America, in Sacramento, CA, on August 6-9. “MathFest is, arguably, the most prestigious math conference in the country,” he says.

Dominic Petruzzelli will present a poster on the determinants of the outcomes of men's and women's professional soccer matches. He found that the variables that predict outcomes (wins/losses) are different according to gender.

Mathfest also accepted Caley Gee’s paper on predicting the future success of NCAA Division I field hockey players based on their first-year statistics. Because Gee cannot attend the conference, Savitz will present this paper.

Gee is also one of five students to receive a Clare Boothe Luce summer scholarship. She is using the grant to continue her field hockey research.

Other Luce Foundation summer scholars are Kayla Maisch, who is conducting a cost-benefit analysis of various types of biodegradable materials; Clare Morgan, who is studying the mathematics behind what makes various chords and combinations of notes sonorous in music; and Kayla Hughes and Kortney Kaelin, who are examining how AI can be successfully used in secondary school math instruction.

Each Clare Boothe Luce awardee receives a $5,000 stipend for conducting 150 hours of summer research under a faculty mentor. They also have up to $1,500 each for supplies and conference expenses.

According to the Luce Foundation website, the Clare Boothe Luce bequest provides support to women in STEM fields. The goal of the program is to close the gender gap in STEM disciplines and in higher education leadership roles.

The Luce undergraduate research awards support projects with faculty mentors to motivate and prepare recipients to apply for graduate study. Professor Savitz is the faculty mentor for all five Luce scholars.